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So I've finally bought a piano. It's a 5'1" Kawai. I plan to move it myself. I understand we will be taking the legs, peddles and top off. Any other advice. Will parts come loose when it is turned on it's side?

I completely agree with the advice offered above, Wilf. It simply is not a good idea, especially after the investment in the purchase. You'd need equipment, and skills, that the internet will not provide. Please consider having a professional assist in your move.

I moved my first grand in grad school. I had some verbal suggestions from a tech and a couple of guys and a tolerant helpful wife. I borrowed the piano board from the college and a dolly as well. It went pretty much without a hitch. Just remember not to allow the piano to rest on the lid hinges or the lid, lest you tear the hinges out of the case when the long part of the piano gets laid over and onto the piano board. As a newbie mover you might ponder removing both the lid and hinges just in case. It DOES help to see pros do this at least once. None of it is rocket science, but like many things, "easy for men that know how."

Why? Are you trying to save money? I watched three pretty strong guys struggle to get my piano into my house. I would also suggest not risk damaging the piano or your safety. And even if you get in safely, it really doesn't look like fun.

It will cost $500.00 and I figure it will take about four hours. Do you have to go to piano moving school? It seems to me that most movers aren't too bright and they don't likely care about my piano as much as I do. I moved my 1 1/4" slate pool table and set it up very successfully. That was estimated at similar cost.

Yes indeed. Two men, not really strong looking moved my grand with ease but they KNOW what they are doing. So no, you dont need to go to "piano movers school" but if you mess up you'll wish you have paid for movers so people here is showing interest on your well being and your piano, no need for attitude I think.In any case, good luck.

I'm notorious for DIY projects, and I like to learn and try new things; having said that, and having been involved in the move of a couple of grand pianos, I'd say hire the pros for this one.

I've moved a few uprights, without a problem, but you need special equipment for a grand; more than a furniture/piano dolly. You'll need a 6’ skid-board, quilts, tie down straps and some tools/sockets to disassemble the legs and lyre. And, you will definitely need some help.

You shouldn’t have to remove the lid, but I’ve been told it is best to remove the music desk and transport it separately rather than leave it in the piano. The lid should be secured closed with large rubber bands or nylon strap, as well as the fall board, if it doesn’t have a working lock.

Once the lid and fall board are secured/strapped closed, and the lyre removed, position the skid board near the left of the piano (long side); have someone remove the left front leg while lifting/supporting the corner; once the leg is removed, lower the corner down to the skid board. Next, lift the right side of the piano up so it rests securely on the skid board, (edge of lid off to the side of skid board); remove the right and rear legs; rap it with blankets/quilts. Make sure the piano is strapped securely to the skid board. Next, lift one side of the skid board and place the dolly underneath. It can now be rolled out to the truck or wherever. Follow the reverse for reassembly.

This is what I remember.

Good luck!

Rick

_________________________
Piano enthusiast and amateur musician: "Treat others the way you would like to be treated". Yamaha C7. YouTube Channel

I realize the risks. I'm not trying to be flippant, but realistically, people who do this for a living weren't born knowing the secrets. That is why I asked for advice. I am an electro-mechanical technician and I run a fabrication shop where we work with large finely finished high priced painted products all the time. There is no forgiveness for making mistakes in my business. If movers were more readily available I would probably have them do it but we had the biggest flood in Alberta history two weeks ago with 14,000 people being forced out of their homes. Half are still out and every truck in the area plus many from out of town are committed to massive cleanup activity. If interested, google " High River flood."

have someone remove the left front leg while lifting/supporting the corner; once the leg is removed, lower the corner down to the skid board. Next, lift the right side of the piano up so it rests securely on the skid board, (edge of lid off to the side of skid board); remove the right and rear legs; rap it with blankets/quilts.

I quit watching my movers when they were bringing it in (didn't want to add any additional pressure) but someone had to hold the piano up while someone else went under to bolt in the legs? I can't even imagine. My piano is 740 lbs, how is that even possible? I think I've seen someone at the gym curl about 150lbs which I thought was pretty amazing. Maybe there's some trick.

I am an electro-mechanical technician and I run a fabrication shop where we work with large finely finished high priced painted products all the time. There is no forgiveness for making mistakes in my business. Wilf

You just identified yourself as part of a very high risk group for piano disasters: someone who has significant expertise in their field and assumes that expertise transfers to other fields.

Hire a professional mover.

I know someone who is a professional automobile technician (and a very good one, over 30 years experience and has held about every certification). Good thing we had some paddles in the boat when we tested the boat motor he fixed. Long time rowing back to shore.

we had the biggest flood in Alberta history two weeks ago with 14,000 people being forced out of their homes. Half are still out and every truck in the area plus many from out of town are committed to massive cleanup activity. Wilf

Condolences to everyone in your area, I hope you and yours are safe.

Every piano mover I've interacted with was a specialist that moved only pianos. So they weren't out moving couches and entertainment centers. So perhaps the disaster wouldn't have as much impact on the piano movers as it would first seem. Or... perhaps every person forced out of their home has a huge grand piano they're trying to get out...

...have someone remove the left front leg while lifting/supporting the corner; once the leg is removed, lower the corner down to the skid board...

...My piano is 740 lbs, how is that even possible?...

I watched one man (professional mover) alone move my 5'10" Kawai from one room to the next using a skid board and/or dolly. When reassembling, he lifted the piano with his back but needed me to slip the final caster into the left front leg. I agree with everyone who suggests you hire a piano mover.

Since you asked, yes we are safe. Four people lost their lives, in the vicinity. I live 300 yards from the river. My Mom and Dad were evacuated out of High River and have had to find new lodgings.

Although It may be possible to find one, the majority of movers are booked until the end of the month. This piano has to mover in the next week. My tech tells me there were a lot of pianos affected and they will be very busy over the coming months dealing with the ones that are salvageable.

As for transferable experience, I move and install sleepers on vehicles worth half a million dollars. These units are about the size of a large grand. The work involves risking damaging them when working in confined spaces. We use padding, straps, muscle power, skids etc. as required. As a side note, I am a gliding instructor and part of that sport involves regularly moving, disassembling, reassembling and working on high performance sailplanes worth 150,000.00. A small mishap last year cost us 6,500.00. So I dounderstand the risks.

Since you asked, yes we are safe. Four people lost their lives, in the vicinity. I live 300 yards from the river. My Mom and Dad were evacuated out of High River and have had to find new lodgings.

Although It may be possible to find one, the majority of movers are booked until the end of the month. This piano has to mover in the next week. My tech tells me there were a lot of pianos affected and they will be very busy over the coming months dealing with the ones that are salvageable.

As for transferable experience, I move and install sleepers on vehicles worth half a million dollars. These units are about the size of a large grand. The work involves risking damaging them when working in confined spaces. We use padding, straps, muscle power, skids etc. as required. As a side note, I am a gliding instructor and part of that sport involves regularly moving, disassembling, reassembling and working on high performance sailplanes worth 150,000.00. A small mishap last year cost us 6,500.00. So I dounderstand the risks.

Thanks again for your concern. We will be careful.

Ok - glad you're safe.

If there's no other option then best suggestion I have is to watch several videos about it.

I think all modern pedal lyres can support the piano in the way shown in this video, but some historic ones can't.

Most pianos I've seen do use a wooden "lever" to hold on the legs, so be sure to have the rubber mallet. When you reassemble this type, strike the the wooden "lever" with sufficient force to ensure the leg is well attached. I've seen some DIYers with wobbly piano legs. This could be very dangerous. Think children crawling under your piano when you install the legs.

You will need the piano skid, as shown in the video, and obviously one could be crafted easily enough.

Again, I don't actually reccomend anyone do this on their own. Console or spinet pianos, ok. But a grand...

If you have no other options it can be done - let us know how it turns out.

Hi Wilf:I purchased (quite cheaply) another grand piano back in April and moved it with my brother and his son. The piano is a 5'11 with a professionally refinished case that was in absolutely perfect condition. We completed the move and set it up in my Dad's finished basement the same night without a single scratch or incident. I made the skid myself out of two 2x4s and a piece of particle board, all wrapped in some leftover carpet. I purchased the tie-down straps at Lowe's. By far the most disappointing thing about moving a grand is that the U-haul trailers do not have tall enough doors to get a grand piano inside. There are some nice 5x8 covered trailers that I've seen with doors that are tall enough to handle a grand on its side, but I don't know anyone who rents those. So, we brought the piano home in my brother's 2002 Ford F-150. I had removed the action and the music desk, and brought all those home separately in my minivan, along with the bench. Then when I went to get the piano itself, I removed the lid, legs, and lyre, wrapped it in moving blankets I had and strapped it to the skid board. We managed to get it tilted easily up onto the tailgate of the truck, and then all lifted the other end up to slide it into the truck. I covered the opposite side of the truck in more moving blankets and gently let the piano down onto it. I strapped it down and off we went the 40 miles to my Dad's house. We set it up in my Dad's finished basement where I've been slowly dismantling it.To see some pictures, check out my previous thread on this piano from back in March--

(Flickr's new format sure makes it difficult to get the URL to post here for pictures.)

I wanted to post pictures of the move and describe how successfully it went, but frankly I was afraid many people would criticize and lecture me on why I shouldn't have attempted this. Well, really it was quite an exciting event and it certainly gave me a great sense of accomplishment being able to do this with just the three of us and a pickup truck. I know for certain it would have been FAR easier if I could have used a nice covered trailer like the ones I've seen at a local trailer specialist dealer, but as I said those weren't for rent.

Now, I will readily admit that I wouldn't have even tried moving this in a pickup truck without the help of my brother's 17 year old son. He is one of the strongest 5'10, 160lb kids I've ever seen. My brother and I are both very small, but his son's incredible strength allowed us to get this piano up in the truck without much difficulty. No doubt, I also had minimized the piano's weight by removing every imaginable part I could.

As for steps, there were a few getting out of the previous owner's house. One step down to the front porch and then 3 down from the porch to the sidewalk. We managed those quite nicely on the dolly I purchased---although I wish I had purchased a more expensive dolly. I should have purchased one with bigger wheels, but other than that it worked well.

I did have some really nice pictures of what I have accomplished so far, but unfortunately my SSD drive where I had every picture and file stored, recently crashed and now I have to go retake all the pictures---for my documentation, etc, etc.

So, that's my grand moving story. I should have posted it earlier.Oh, BTW, as I mentioned in the original post about this piano, I was correct that it was NOT a 7'9 piano. ;-)

Bought my 5'6" grand 3 weeks ago. Granted, it was a freebie, so had I dropped it I would have been out very little. Time was also a factor. It was free-- but he NEEDED it gone by the following Wednesday. Movers were booked for the next week. Finally, the piano was 100 miles away. So when paying for someone's time, that 200 mile round trip meant a lot of hours-- I feared that I couldn't afford a mover to go that far anyway.

Borrowed a board and dolly from a semi-retired local technician I found through ptg, though yellow pages work too I'm sure. A college isn't a bad idea either.Or you can build one... but not worth it.

We rented a low uhaul trailer with a ramp. That made it very easy-- no steep angle down from the bed of a lifted pickup.I bought a $23 sheet of low grade but real plywood from lowes to use a ramp up the porch. Got 4 friends and treated them to lunch. Watched some youtube videos. Hired a professional mover to load it where I was picking it up for $100 --just to load it-- and then unloaded in reverse with my friends into my house. There were no real difficulties. I say go for it.Prior advice given on methods, applies.

Ditto this comment:"I moved my first grand in grad school. I had some verbal suggestions from a tech and a couple of guys and a tolerant helpful wife. I borrowed the piano board from the college and a dolly as well. It went pretty much without a hitch. Just remember not to allow the piano to rest on the lid hinges or the lid, lest you tear the hinges out of the case when the long part of the piano gets laid over and onto the piano board. As a newbie mover you might ponder removing both the lid and hinges just in case. It DOES help to see pros do this at least once. None of it is rocket science, but like many things, "easy for men that know how."

We've never left a lid on when we move grands. Most movers will leave them on mainly because they don't want another piece to keep track of. We have road cases that we had made to house all parts including the action. If we are picking up a core we may leave the action in but if someone else owns it we will take it out which is why they are paying the big bucks. Regulation and alignment can get screwed up when you hit the first pothole with a piano sitting on its side.

I will be adding a segment to my website for comical relief of all the DIY moves we have photographed this past year. I have lots of pics of pianos gone airborne. Through trailer walls, out of pick up trucks and through windshields. The tie downs of choice for DIY is kite string or masking tape.

You need a few good tools to do a good move. A real dolly with a 1000 pound capacity, not the 9.99 harbor freight type. a jack ( made of 4 boards) 29 inches tall to lift the end that you are taking the 1st leg off of. Moving pads, not towels. Common sense knowledge of physics , gravity and geometry.If you cannot deadlift at least 500 pounds and read the Magna-Carta while you are on a stairwell holding it back then you will need a helper.

Another thing to remember is most people will pick up something for lets say 30 seconds and say wow this isn't bad but get to stairs and you will be worn out within 3 steps. Don't get on any stairs alone.

So, thanks to all for their advice and ideas. My Kawai GM10 is now home and in good health. The move went well. We had to bring it down 13 stairs with a turn at the top. We did remove the lid to reduce weight. We then shrink wrapped the piano as seen in one of the videos recommended, and used about six moving blankets, to wrap the piano and the parts. We covered a board with carpet and foam to rest the piano on and strapped it down with several 1000 lb ratchets well padded with extra foam. All buckles were placed in such a way as to eliminate likelihood of damage. We had four people including my wife to help, the largest of us being about 150 lbs, so not really your strongest crew. I will say, that it was extremely heavy. We weren't really able to pick it up but rather skidded it along. We put a roll of rubber matting on the stairs as the home owner was very concerned about his new carpet. This worked to make it so that we practically had to pull the piano down the stairs rather than hold it back. We then muscled it onto a wheeled dolly to move to the front porch. We backed the pickup truck up to the stairs and only had to go down six inches to get it into the box. Once in the back of my Dakota, we secured it with several good ratchets (1 1/2" and 2" straps). We kind of used overkill here to make sure there was no possibility of it shifting. When we arrived at my place we had to lift it up onto our deck. We just happened to have a 20 ton crane truck sitting in my yard (related to my business). So this made the lift onto the deck quite easy. So all is well and the piano is immaculate.

I wouldn't recommend this to just anyone, and I don't plan to go into the business, but it can be done as long as you take lots of precautions and care. In our case time was an issue. I don't imagine most people have access to a crane truck when you need it either. Another time, I would likely just use a mover.

Thanks again for all the input, cautions and recommendations. At some point I may post some pictures.Now back to enjoying my first ever grand piano.

I have a friend in the piano moving business who has helped me out a few times... he is about 6'2" and 275 lbs, mostly muscle. Thing is, he expects me to lift just as much weight as he does, but it ain't gonna happen.

We'd love to see pictures of your new-to-you Kawai baby grand!

Rick

_________________________
Piano enthusiast and amateur musician: "Treat others the way you would like to be treated". Yamaha C7. YouTube Channel

Glad it went well and nobody got hurt or the piano. I'm about 150lbs as well and moving a piano wouldn't be my first choice either, especially if there weren't at least 1-2 big guys.

I thought some type of furniture dolly with wheels is supposed to be used for at least part of the trek, no? I thought I saw the guys use some type of heavy-duty furniture dolly (with wheels) when coming up the stairs. Well, I was trying not to watch them too closely thinking it would make them nervous.